Women’s and Men’s Eights Reach Finals at 2023 World Rowing Championships

The U.S. women's eight won its heat to advance to the final, while the men's eight took second in its opening race to also advance to the finals, highlighting the third day of racing at the 2023 World Rowing Championships in Belgrade, Serbia.

In addition, the U.S. women's pair, women's quadruple sculls, and men's quadruple sculls advanced to the semifinals through Tuesday's repechages.

In the women's eight, coxswain Cristina Castagna (Cincinnati, Ohio/University of Washington), Charlotte Buck (Nyack, N.Y./Columbia University/USRowing Training Center-Princeton), Mary Mazzio-Manson (Wellesley, Mass./Yale University/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), Brooke Mooney (Keene Valley, N.Y./University of Washington/USRowing Training Center-Princeton), Alina Hagstrom (Seattle, Wash./Oregon State University/USRowing Training Center-Princeton), Regina Salmons (Methuen, Mass./University of Pennsylvania/USRowing Training Center-Princeton), Jessica Thoennes (Highlands Ranch, Colo./University of Washington/USRowing Training Center-Princeton), Margaret Hedeman (Concord, Mass./Yale University), and Emily Froehlich (Fishers, Ind./University of Texas/Craftsbury Green Racing Project) won the first of two heats to advance directly to Sunday's final. With only one to advance, the crews were in a virtual dead heat 500 meters into the race, with Canada holding a slight lead over Australia and the U.S. In the second 500 meters, the Americans edged out to about a deck lead on Australia, with Canada another seat or two back. The U.S. began to extend its margin at about 1,300 meters and held a three-seat lead as the crews hit 500 meters to go. The Americans then pulled away over the final quarter of the race to win by a little over two seconds. The U.S. clocked a 6:18.36, with Australia finishing in a 6:20.56. Romania dominated the second heat, winning by more than five seconds in a 6:17.67.

"It was a good first race," Buck said. "Obviously, we had a few things that we wanted to accomplish, not only technically in the race, but obviously coming first is really nice to qualify for the final for Sunday and the big task then. It's good to think about what happened, what went well in this race, and get a few more days to practice before the final."

"We just need to hone in on the little things we can improve on. There's always something else you can improve on. We've talked a lot about the one of nine within the crew – everyone is a little part of the machine and just getting the machine perfectly well-oiled for Sunday."

The U.S. men's eight of coxswain Jimmy Catalano (Greenwich Conn./University of Wisconsin), Pieter Quinton (Portland, Ore./Harvard University/California Rowing Club), Ezra Carlson (Eureka, Calif./University of Washington/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), Alexander Hedge (Morristown, N.J./Columbia University/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), Chris Carlson (Bedford, N.H./University of Washington/California Rowing Club), Peter Chatain (Winnetka, Ill./Stanford University), Oliver Bub (Westport, Conn./Dartmouth College/California Rowing Club), Clark Dean (Sarasota, Fla./Harvard University), and Henry Hollingsworth (Dover, Mass./Brown University/California Rowing Club) finished second in the last of two heats to advance to Sunday's final. With two to advance, the U.S. got off the line basically even with Australia, trailing by a bowball at the 500-meter mark. The American crew took the lead by about two seats 750 meters in and held about four seats at the halfway point. That's when Australia started to chip away. The Australians closed the gap to a foot in the third quarter of the race and then powered their way to victory over the final stretch. Australia won the race in a 5:37.85. The U.S. easily secured the second qualifying spot in a 5:40.41, finishing nearly six seconds ahead of Germany. Great Britain won the other heat in a 5:34.35.

"Our race today, we definitely executed the first half, first 1,250 (meters), really well," Catalano said. "We got off the line really aggressively, but we were smooth in our rhythm, got right into it, and then got into the work right away. For that being our first run down the course at a world championship, I was really pleased with how we executed that first half. I think for the second half, moving forward, we just want to hold that momentum, hold that speed going forward, and capitalizing on that."

Meghan Musnicki (Naples, N.Y./Ithaca College/California Rowing Club) and Alie Rusher (West Bend, Wis./Stanford University/California Rowing Club) advanced to the semifinals thanks to a victory in the second of four repechages on Tuesday. After coming up a half-deck short of the semifinals in the heat, the U.S. duo took a deck lead over Great Britain's Esme Booth and Emily Ford during the first 500 meters, with Paraguay sitting just behind. With only two to advance to the semis, the American and British crews began to open up some space on Paraguay in the second 500 meters. At the midway point, the U.S. had extended its lead to about a half-length, with Great Britain moving out to about a length on Paraguay.

"We got off to a significantly better start today, which was kind of our one learning from yesterday," Musnicki said. "Our goal going into today was just have a better start. We wanted to execute on that, and I think we did. So now, we can take today's race and come away with things that we want to improve on in the semi. It's that simple. Race-to race is another opportunity for us to come together better as a pairing and learn from the previous one."

Great Britain moved back to within a deck in the third 500 as Paraguay dropped back. In the final 500 meters, the U.S. pushed out to an open-water victory, with GB finishing with a length of open water on Paraguay. Musnicki and Rusher finished with a time of 7:06.88, with Booth and Ford finishing in a 7:10.12. Semifinals will take place on Thursday.

"We're taking each race for what it is – an opportunity to learn – and learn something that we can bring into the next race," said Musnicki about the pair that came together just this February. "It's a fun pair to be in, and it's an opportunity I never thought I'd have at (age) 40, lining up to race at the world championships. I'm trying to enjoy it, learn from it, and take steps forward. We want to qualify this boat for the U.S. team for the Olympics next year."

The women's quadruple sculls crew of Emily Kallfelz (Jamestown, R.I./Princeton University/Cambridge Boat Club), Grace Joyce (Northfield, Ill./University of Wisconsin/Craftsbury Green Racing Project), Molly Reckford (Short Hills, N.J./Dartmouth College/Sarasota Crew), and Lauren O'Connor (Belleville, Wis./University of Wisconsin/ARION) finished second in the repechage to advance to Thursday's semifinals. With three to advance, Italy took the early lead on the U.S. and France in the first 500 meters, with the U.S. sitting about four seats back at the 500-meter mark. The U.S. cut the lead to a half boat at the midway point and about one seat with 500 meters to go as the two crews pulled away from France. At the line, Italy won by about a half-length, clocking a 6:25.91, with the U.S. finishing in a 6:27.10. France took the third qualification spot.

"After yesterday – the conditions were pretty tough, and we didn't necessarily handle them as well as we would like to have. So today, we were going into this race just trying to get a solid, confident piece under our belts because we haven't raced together as this crew before," Kallfelz said. "I think another race can never hurt just to get some experience. That was our mentality going into it – focus on our race plan, stay inside the gunnels, and execute like what we think we can do. Sticking with the Italians was good. I think we have another gear on Thursday, and I'm sure we'll need it."

The men's quadruple sculls crew of Dominique Williams (Madison, Conn./University of Pennsylvania/Vesper Boat Club), Will Legenzowski (Vista, N.Y./Brown University/California Rowing Club), Liam Galloway (Ridgefield, Conn./Yale University), and Kevin Cardno (Huntsville, Ala./University of Alabama, Huntsville/Texas Rowing Center) reached the semifinals thanks to a third-place finish in the second of two repechages. With three to advance, the U.S. got off the line dead even the Czech Republic boat in third position behind Australia and Lithuania. Australia began getting some separation in the second 500 meters, as the U.S. pulled its bowball into second position ahead of the Czech crew and the boat from Norway. The U.S. still held a bowball lead on Norway for second as the two crews entered the final 500 meters. Norway inched ahead, but the U.S. responded to leave the result to a photo-finish. Australia won the race in a 5:49.76, with Norway taking second by 0.01 seconds ahead of the U.S. The Norwegian boat finished with a time of 5:51.58, with the U.S. crossing in a 5:51.59. Ireland finished fourth, failing to advance. The U.S. will race in the semifinals on Thursday.

"I thought we executed our race plan pretty well, which was to be in the pack and re-evaluate as we came down the course," Cardno said. "Everyone went out pretty hard. We just trusted our rhythm, and that got us into a good position. We kept fighting. Ireland was attacking off to the right, Lithuania and Norway as well, but we just stuck to our plan, stayed with the rhythm, and went up at the end."

"Just keep trusting the plan," said Cardno about heading into the semifinals. "The group of guys we have in the quad is great. They bring a lot of energy, so pretty excited to step it up again. We haven't raced at all together this summer other than selection. It seems like we just get better and better each time."

In the lightweight women's pair, the U.S. crew of Elaine Tierney (West Chester, Pa./Temple University/Penn AC) and Solveig Imsdahl (Eutin, Germany/Cornell University/Penn AC) finished third in the race for lanes. Italy's Elisa Grisoni and Serena Mossi took the lead in the first 500 meters and rowed away from the rest of the field, finishing with a time of 7:25.66. Germany's Eva Hohoff and Luise Munch finished second in a 7:37.71, with the U.S. duo clocking a 7:42.14. The three crews will race again on Friday with medals on the line.

The lightweight men's quadruple sculls crew of Jamie Copus (Oxford, England/Oxford Brookes University/Penn AC), Casey Howshall (Philadelphia, Pa./University of Pennsylvania/Riverside Boat Club), Ian Richardson (Amesbury, Mass./University of Connecticut/Riverside Boat Club), and Bernard Aparicio (Corona, Calif./San Diego State University/San Diego Rowing Club) finished third in the race for lanes ahead of Friday's medal race. Italy took command early, building more than a three-second lead over Germany in the first 500 meters and extending it to more than five seconds at the halfway point. The U.S. rowed in third the entire way down the course. Italy won the race in a 6:15.88, with Germany clocking a 6:23.15. The U.S. finished with a time of 6:23.55.

Racing in the first of four heats in the PR1 men's single sculls, Andrew Mangan (Buffalo, N.Y./Stanford University/West Side Rowing Club) finished fourth and will race in tomorrow's repechages. With just one to advance directly to the semifinals, France's Alexis Sanchez took the early lead on Israel's Shmuel Daniel and Italy's Giacomo Perini before Daniel pulled into first position at the midway point, just a couple of feet ahead of Perini. The Italian, who won silver at last year's world championships, took his spot at the head of the field just after the 1,000-meter mark and methodically pulled away for an easy victory. Mangan sat in fifth place for much of the race before moving into fourth in the final 500 meters. Perini won the race in a 9:09.22, with Daniel taking second in a 9:14.80. Mangan finished fourth in a 10:06.50.

The PR2 mixed double sculls crew of Russell Gernaat (Redwood City, Calif./Lake Casitas Rowing Club) and Madison Eberhard (Buffalo, N.Y./West Side Rowing Club) finished fifth in the second of two heats and will race in tomorrow's repechages. With one to advance to the final, Gernaat and Eberhard dropped to fifth off the line and were unable to challenge the top crews. China's Jijian Jiang and Shuang Liu jumped out to the early lead before Great Britain's Gregg Stevenson and Lauren Rowles reeled them in during the third 500 meters. Stevenson and Rowles went on to win by more than three seconds, crossing the line in an 8:00.57 to move on to the final. China finished second in an 8:03.72. Gernaat and Eberhard clocked a 9:03.93.

In addition to the two boats that moved to repechages this today, seven more U.S. crews will be in action on Wednesday including six in quarterfinals.

Men's single sculler Eliot Putnam (Littleton, Mass./Cornell University/New York Athletic Club) advanced to Wednesday's quarterfinals with a victory in the third of eight repechages yesterday. Putnam will take on scullers representing Croatia, The Netherlands, Individual Neutral Athletes, Sweden, and Australia in the third quarterfinal. The top three finishers will advance to the semifinals. The Netherlands' Simon van Dorp and individual neutral athlete Yauheni Zalaty won their heats, with van Dorp recording the fastest time of the eight heats. Putnam finished third behind van Dorp in Sunday's opening round.

In the women's single sculls, 10-time national team member Kara Kohler (Clayton, Calif./University of California, Berkeley/Texas Rowing Center) won her heat on Sunday by open water and will take on scullers from Japan, France, Serbia, Spain, and Norway in the third quarterfinal, with the top three finishers moving on to the semifinals. Kohler is the only heat winner in the third quarterfinal. Serbia's Jovana Arsic finished second in her heat.

In the lightweight men's single sculls, Sam Melvin (Huntington Beach, Calif./Columbia University/New York Athletic Club) finished second in the third of five heats on Sunday and will race in the fourth quarterfinal against Ireland, Belgium, Italy, France, and Georgia. The top three finishers will move on to the semifinals. Italy's Niels Torre is the lone heat winner in the fourth quarterfinal.

The lightweight men's double sculls duo of Jimmy McCullough (Philadelphia, Pa./University of Delaware/Texas Rowing Center) and Zachary Heese (Pelham, N.Y./University of Virginia/Texas Rowing Center) came back to finish second in Sunday's second of five heats to move on to the quarterfinals. MucCullough and Heese will take on crews from Poland, Uzbekistan, Switzerland, Mexico, and Estonia in the fourth quarterfinal, with the top three moving on to the semifinals. Switzerland's Raphael Ahumada Ireland and Jan Schaeuble won their heat, while Mexico's Alexis Bladimir Lopez Garcia and Miguel Angel Carballo Nieto finished second in their heat like the U.S. duo.

Senior national team newcomers Evan Olson (Bothell, Wash./University of Washington/Seattle Scullers/Penn AC) and William Bender (Norwich, Vt./Dartmouth College) also finished second in their heat of the men's pair on Sunday to move on to the quarterfinals. The duo will take on boats from Canada, New Zealand, Spain, France, and Poland in the second quarterfinal. Spain's Javier Garcia Ordonez and Aime Canalejo Pazos clocked the fastest time of the heats. New Zealand's Phillip Wilson and Benjamin Taylor finished second in their heat.

In the men's double sculls, Ben Davison (Inverness, Fla./University of Washington/California Rowing Club) and Sorin Koszyk (Grosse Pointe Park, Mich./Cornell University/California Rowing Club) won the fourth of five heats on Sunday to advance to the quarterfinals. They will take on crews form Belgium, Spain, Italy, Norway, and Czech Republic in the fourth quarterfinal, with the top three advancing to the semifinals. Italy's Matteo Sartori and Luca Rambaldi finished second in their heat, while both Spain and Norway finished third in their heats.

In the PR3 mixed double sculls, Todd Vogt (Rochester, N.Y. /Portland Boat Club) and Gemma Wollenschlaeger (St. Augustine Beach, Fla./Temple University) will race in tomorrow's repechages after finishing third in their heat. Vogt and Wollenschlaeger will take on crews from Italy, Israel, Great Britain, and Mexico, with the top two moving on to the finals.

In total, the U.S. has 22 boats competing this week in Belgrade. In addition to world championships being on the line, the regatta is the first opportunity for countries to qualify boats for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Quarterfinals will take place on Wednesday, with semifinals starting on Thursday. Medal races will take place starting Friday. Nearly 1,000 athletes from 74 delegations are scheduled to compete. Italy has entered the most boats with 24, followed by Germany with 23.

The live race tracker will be available for all races on www.worldrowing.com. Live video streaming will be available on the World Rowing website for all eight days of competition (local restrictions apply). Video streaming will start five minutes before the first race.

Click here for USRowing's daily coverage of the 2023 World Rowing Championships. Click here for USRowing's photo galleries. Click here for the official schedule, heat sheets, and results on worldrowing.com. Follow along with the U.S. National Team at the 2023 World Rowing Championships by using the hashtags #WorldRowingChamps and #WRCHBelgrade.

USRowing would like to thank Filippi Lido, the Official Boat Supplier for the U.S. Senior, Under 23, and Para Rowing National Teams. Under the agreement, Filippi is providing USRowing a fleet of boats for international competitions including the World Rowing Cup regattas, World Rowing Under 23 Championships, World Rowing Championships, Olympic Games, and Paralympic Games, as well as a domestic training fleet for the USRowing Training Centers.